Shloka 119
Right Conduct, Offenses Against Brāhmaṇas, Truthfulness, and the Greatness of the Cow
Go-Māhātmya
संक्रांत्यां पौर्णमास्यां चामावास्यायां तथैव च । हलस्य वाहनात्पापं गवामयुतहत्यया
saṃkrāṃtyāṃ paurṇamāsyāṃ cāmāvāsyāyāṃ tathaiva ca | halasya vāhanātpāpaṃ gavāmayutahatyayā
Am Tag der Saṅkrānti, am Vollmondtag und ebenso am Neumondtag heißt es, die Sünde, den Pflug als Fahrzeug zu benutzen, sei der Sünde gleich, zehntausend Kühe zu töten.
Unspecified (narratorial/śāstric injunction within the chapter context)
Concept: Certain acts become especially blameworthy on liminal sacred days; disrespect toward agrarian implements and bovine-linked dharma is treated as grave pāpa.
Application: Avoid frivolous or disrespectful behavior on Saṅkrānti/Pūrṇimā/Amāvāsyā; treat farm tools and animals with reverence; choose charity, japa, and restraint on junction-days.
Primary Rasa: bhayanaka
Secondary Rasa: shanta
Visual Art Cues: {"scene_description":"A village crossroads at dawn on Saṅkrānti: a man about to ride a plough like a cart is halted by a sage pointing to a celestial balance where dark smoke of pāpa rises like a storm. In the sky, the sun shifts into a new rāśi while unseen devas witness the moral weight of the act.","primary_figures":["a village farmer","a stern sage (ṛṣi)","personified Kāla (subtle, shadowy)","celestial witnesses (devas)"],"setting":"agrarian village edge with fields, a plough, cows grazing at a distance, a small shrine under a peepal tree","lighting_mood":"golden dawn with ominous undertone","color_palette":["burnished gold","earth brown","ash gray","indigo shadow","saffron"],"tanjore_prompt":"Tanjore painting style: agrarian Saṅkrānti dawn with a farmer near a decorated plough, a commanding ṛṣi raising a warning hand, a small Viṣṇu shrine under a peepal; gold leaf halo around the sage and sun-disc entering a new zodiac sign, rich reds and greens, ornate borders, gem-studded ornaments on shrine icons, dramatic moral symbolism with dark pāpa-clouds in the corner.","pahari_prompt":"Pahari miniature style: lyrical rural landscape with terraced fields and distant hills, delicate figures of farmer and sage, subtle celestial sun transition, cows as gentle motifs; cool natural palette with refined linework, moral tension conveyed through posture and gaze.","kerala_mural_prompt":"Kerala mural style: bold black outlines, stylized farmer and ṛṣi, symbolic sun-disc and zodiac band above, cows rendered with temple-mural symmetry; natural pigments in red/yellow/green, ritual warning mood, minimal background but strong iconographic clarity.","pichwai_prompt":"Pichwai cloth painting style: central motif of sacred time—sun and lunar discs—framed by lotus borders; cows and peacocks in the margins; a small Viṣṇu emblem above the village scene, intricate floral patterns, deep blues and gold, emphasizing dharma of cow-protection and restraint on parvan days."}
Audio Atmosphere: {"recitation_mood":"dramatic","suggested_raga":"Bhairavi","pace":"moderate-narrative","voice_tone":"authoritative","sound_elements":["temple bell","distant lowing of cows","morning conch shell","rustle of fields","brief silence at the warning phrase"]}
Sandhi Resolution Notes: चामावास्यायां = च + अमावास्यायाम्; तथैव = तथा + एव; वाहनात्पापं = वाहनात् + पापम्; गवामयुतहत्यया = गवाम् + अयुतहत्यया (समास: अयुतहत्यया).
FAQs
It highlights three sacred calendrical occasions—Saṅkrānti (solar ingress), Paurṇimā (full moon), and Amāvāsyā (new moon)—as times when certain actions are treated as especially blameworthy.
Go-hatya is presented in Purāṇic ethics as an extremely grave sin; the verse uses it as a benchmark to stress the severity of the prohibited act on these holy days.
The verse teaches restraint and reverence on sacred days, emphasizing that careless or disrespectful conduct—especially involving agricultural implements and dharmic norms—can be treated as a serious moral transgression.